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I have never had mood swings like this before, I mean I fight with my wife, have accused her of being unfaithful, cry all the time uncontrollably, have extreme mood swings. I see a therapist each week and have an appointment with a shrink in 3 more weeks. Anyone experiencing the same type of mood swings. I take Wellibutan and Xanax for depression and anxiety, but it doesn't seem to be getting any better. Does it get better? what is causing it? no other side effects other than mood swings?

I don't take Atripla, but that's because I was specifically concerned about the depression side-effects. I would agree that it's worth talking with your doctor about and perhaps changing meds, particularly if you've not experienced depression before... How are you doing now?

It's good that you're speaking up like this. It's too common for someone to think there is something wrong with them rather than realizing they are having a side-effect of medication. Atripla is a powerful med. It can be very effective but it is also one that not infrequently has very strong and adverse side effects emotionally. Your reaction may be a passing one but maybe not.

Definitely talk to your doctor about this. And let us know if something different is prescribed.

It's the Sustiva component of Atripla that causes these problems. You can switch the Sustiva component out for other meds, taken with Truvada (the other two-med portion of Atripla). A popular switch that will keep your once-a-day dosing is Reyataz (boosted with Norvir) plus Truvada. There are others as well.

You may have to be assertive with your doctor on this. Many do not seem to take the depressive/mood-swing side-effects seriously. But it's your body, your life, and if Sustiva isn't a good fit for you, you have every right to change.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

thanks for all the input, well here i am, 3 weeks later, feeling much better. I am not sure if it is just the placebo effect or what...my Dr. prescribed me "Abilify" to boost up the welibutin. I felt much better within days of taken, but prior to taken it i was going crazy. My marriage is stressful and fragile enough without my crazy mood swings. I got my first labs after being on Atripla for two months. My CD4 lowered just a bit, but my viral load is much less. I am not quite undetectable yet, but expect and hope to when i visit my Dr. in 2 weeks. I will say I forget a lot, still get dizzy and switched from taken at night to a morning regime. I work a lot of night and tended to eat late, thus causing myself to wake nauseous. I have not been sick since switching, but I still wake up at 4-5 AM everyday It is becoming troublesome. I have loss a lot of weight as well. I am 5'7" and now weigh 146lbs, down from 158 a year ago. I will start to drink more shakes because I do not and can not eat enough. If any one has any question please do not hesitate to ask. I will update more frequently.

Glad to hear you're doing better now that you're taking Abilify. Your side effects may have been increased because you were eating late due to your work schedule and taking Atripla on a full stomach, which is not recommended. Now that you're taking it in the mornings, hopefully you'll sleep better at night. It does cause sleep disturbances sometimes. I tolerate it well, but I wake up at 4 or 5 am sometimes, and find it difficult to go right back to sleep.

You mentioned that you "forget a lot". I hope you were not saying you forget to take your Atripla a lot. Do you mean that your short term memory has gotten worse? I haven't noticed that problem, but I try to keep myself organized by emailing myself reminders of anything important I need to do in a given week.